


The sum of all the parts

by 35391291



Category: The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Gen, Iglishmêk, M/M, Sentient Nature
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-30
Updated: 2017-09-30
Packaged: 2019-01-07 08:08:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12228930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/35391291/pseuds/35391291
Summary: There are many stories here within. They have been alive for hundreds of years. They used to be a secret, but perhaps they don't have to be anymore.Gimli understands the earth. He always has.





	The sum of all the parts

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by [fog_shadow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fog_shadow/pseuds/fog_shadow) in the [2000GigolasFics](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/2000GigolasFics) collection. 



> Inspired by this prompt: _Dwarves, canonically, can understand nature (plus, Tolkien's nature is kind of sentient)._

Butterflies as we are  
freeze in flight beneath the starry sky  
but the ghosts fly on and on...  
in this sense we all belong,  
oh, Gaia!

And the sum of all the parts  
is the all-forgiving heart  
of Gaia.

\- Peter Hammill: [Gaia](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKo1JJ_ef6k).

*

Gimli understands the earth. He always has. He knows the words of the birds and the clouds and the rocks. He listens, and they talk. Their voices speak of living, being and belonging. So many years, so many dreams. So many voices out here. So many ghosts. Sometimes he simply stands there and breathes. And he speaks back, with his hands, with his mind. And he understands. It is the way of his people. A secret. A language. A silent embrace.

The elf knows. He understands too. At night, he walks, and he listens, and he speaks. Sometimes, he shares with Gimli. What do the leaves say? What does the clear stream tell him? Perhaps they aren't so different. They have the same water, the same trees. The same world. At night, when sleep doesn't come, they have the same dreams hiding in their hearts. They reach out to the world, and it listens, and it knows. And they belong.

There are many stories here within. They have been alive for hundreds of years, and they live in his memory like a gift. And they used to be a secret, but perhaps they don't have to be anymore. After this journey, everything will change. Maybe the earth will write new stories. And it will show him the sky again, so that he will remember that the stars are still There. It will reach out for his hands. It will whisper, it will say _I am alive, I am still alive. And I know. I forgive you._

He's seen the caves, the heart of the earth. He's seen gold and jewels and precious rocks. But none of them will ever come close to _this_. He has been moved by the world. He has been touched, and it feels like a million feathers, a million butterflies. And he will never be the same again. Will the trees know him? And what will the stones tell him now? He _knows_ , and maybe this is something he can't keep for himself. The world has crafted a new life for him, a new heart. And it is free, it doesn't belong to him alone. He knows that he has to share this secret. When the earth speaks, he knows its strength. And he offers his own. He holds out his hands, and they shape the answer. And the earth knows. His heart knows too, and he lets it go. To sail away, to belong.


End file.
